Last week's COVID Data Tracker Weekly Review focused on the mental health concerns of public health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many people have been struggling for the past two years, whether it be from illness, deaths of loved ones, economic hardship, disrupted education, or any of the many stressors that the pandemic has introduced to the world. Unfortunately, children and adolescents are no exception. Pre-pandemic data showed significant increases in mental health symptoms among U.S. high school students during the decade before COVID-19, and an April 2022 CDC report found that this crisis has continued during the pandemic.

According to the report, more than a third of high school students reported poor mental health during the pandemic, and almost half said they had felt persistently sad or hopeless during the past year. Students who didn't feel close to anyone at school had higher rates of poor mental health, and the same held true for students who hadn't been virtually connected to others during the pandemic.

However, there are many resources available to help children and their families start a conversation and help navigate through a mental health struggle. CDC's How Right Now online guide can help kids identify how they're feeling at any given moment and points them to resources for handling emotions like fear, grief, anger, and sadness. It has links to advice, hotlines, and support groups. There's also a section with ideas for practicing gratitude, which is a great way to reduce stress and boost your physical and emotional well-being.

If you or your teen need immediate mental health support, call 988 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline or use the lifeline chat to connect with a trained crisis counselor.